Mercedes-Benz is world’s most valuable automotive brand, according to the latest study conducted by Brand Finance. The premium car maker overtakes Toyota for the top spot, while its arch-nemesis BMW comfortably sits in number three.
Mercedes-Benz managed to achieve an impressive 24% year-over-year growth in its brand value, hitting $43.9 billion. The former number one, Toyota, fell by 6%, now sitting at $43.7 billion, which Brand Finance blames on the Japanese car maker’s weakened position on the world’s most influential car market, China. The Chinese have lately become keen on aspirational luxury brands, letting the popular volume brands fall behind. BMW goes into the third place, up by 6% to $41.8 billion.
It is though the market that made Mercedes’ value skyrocket for the past few years and the fact that the Chinese Geely recently purchased a nearly 10% stake in Mercedes-Benz parent company Daimler could boost the three-pointed star brand by $6 billion.
The Volkswagen Group, keeping Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche and Lamborghini under its umbrella, boasts with a position as most valuable overall, at $75.8 billion, but the figure includes the entire portofolio.
Aston Martin also climbed at the top of the ranking, as the British automaker went up by 268% over the previous year, now reaching a brand value of $3.6 billion. The Brits have recently announced that 2017 was the first profitable year since 2010, an outcome that boosted the company from the 77th spot in the ranking straight to the 24th for this year’s forecast.
The sales of the SUVs generated major revenues for most of the brands. SUVs now represent 34% of all new car sales to almost 28 million units globally. Mercedes-Benz sold 805,000 SUVs worldwide in 2017.
